


perfect for each other

by maketea



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Alya Césaire Is The Best, Best Friends, Comfort, Fluff, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-31
Updated: 2020-08-31
Packaged: 2021-03-06 17:40:47
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,094
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26212813
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/maketea/pseuds/maketea
Summary: marinette doesn't know what the 'right decision' should be. alya helps out.
Relationships: Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir/Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug, Alya Césaire & Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug
Comments: 19
Kudos: 153





	perfect for each other

**Author's Note:**

> i love alya

"Alya, do you think I'm a bad person?"

Alya turned away from the movie to stare, a red fruit string dangling out of her mouth.

"Yes, Miss Saviour-of-Paris, I definitely think you're a bad person with no morals." She tilted her head back and pushed the rest of the fruit string into her mouth. "It's not like I run a blog about you, or anything."

Marinette smiled, shook her head, and returned to the movie.

"Why, though?" 

Marinette turned.

Alya was watching her, now, the film from her phone flashing onto her glasses and making her gaze unreadable.

"Why what?" Marinette asked.

"Why do you ask?"

The popcorn enroute to Marinette's mouth dropped into her lap. She searched for it on her legs, and upon finding nothing, busied herself with searching for it on her carpet. So her carpet wouldn't be hard to clean later on, she told herself, despite the popcorn kernels forming a ring around the bowl on the floor.

She didn't look back up when she spoke. "It's silly, honestly. You probably wouldn't even know what I'm talking about."

Alya paused the movie and sat up against the chaise. A glare still shone against the bottom of her glasses, but this time, her furrowed brow said more than enough.

"Girl," she said. "What's wrong? Did Chloé say something to you?"

"No, for once." She found the missing popcorn kernel, placed it on a napkin, then fiddled with the ensemble, keeping her face lowered. "It's… remember when we were with Chat Noir last night?"

Alya paused. "... _ he _ didn't say anything to you, surely?"

Her laugh came out of its own accord. Chat Noir? Upset her? Maybe once, around the time they'd first met, via misunderstanding or a slip of the tongue or something equally as accidental. 

Though Alya's guess very nearly hit home.

"Of course not." Marinette fiddled with the napkin. She glanced at the paused scene on her phone. More than anything, she wanted to have this conversation over some background noise, but Alya didn't seem close to letting up. "Do you remember what you said to him? About, you know… how we'd be perfect together?"

She had paraphrased. Gave Alya a chance to roll her eyes and laugh and tell her there's no need to be upset over something like that.

Because there truly was no reason. Patrol had slowed down, and they'd all settled on a rooftop from where they could watch the lights on the Eiffel Tower while they chatted. Rena Rouge had made a passing comment — not unkindly, not as a jibe, but as a friendly tease, as one often does — to Ladybug, about how she and Chat Noir were  _ so _ each other's types, it was a surprise they weren't dating yet.

But the only reason they weren't dating was— well. Ladybug.

Alya didn't roll her eyes. Nor laugh. She sat up straighter, leaving the phone on the floor so she could bring her hand up to point at herself.

" _ I  _ made you think you're a bad person?" she said.

Marinette sighed. "It's not like that. It just… got me thinking."

The longer Alya sat in her stunned silence, the more Marinette realised she didn't have time to ruminate over what words to use.

"Okay. Okay, uh—" Marinette brought her knees up to her chest. "This is dumb. And I kinda know what you're gonna say already, but…"

She swallowed her dry mouth before continuing.

"I think… I might have feelings for Chat Noir," she said.

Alya gave her a quizzical look. "That's great, but… why would that make you a bad person?"

Marinette bit her lip, facing her polka-dotted socks. " _ And _ I have feelings for Adrien."

Alya's shoulders relaxed. "Ah. I see."

Reaching over, she switched off the phone screen, and placed it face down on the floor.

She then copied Marinette, knees up to her chest, the two now toe-to-toe. Marinette didn't know where she had learned this from — maybe a skill she picked up after helping Ella and Etta settle down after an emotional day — but she always made sure they were at eye-level during important conversations. Nobody ever did that for Marinette before. Oddly, the mimicry in body language made her feel… understood.

But Marinette knew full well that, with Alya, it didn't stop at being a feeling. Alya always understood. Alya herself chalked it up as being a natural journalist, and while Marinette didn't doubt that for a second, she also had enough experiences as Ladybug with reporters wringing her out for something,  _ anything _ to turn into the article that would give them their next paycheck. In fact, Rena Rouge would always be the one to stall them so she and Chat Noir could transform back.

"It wasn't your fault," Marinette hastened to say. "Just so you know."

"Yeah, I get that," Alya said. "You know, you can't control your feelings."

Marinette sighed heavily. "I knew you'd say that."

"'cause it's true."

"I know, but… I feel bad. Because I want to make a choice, but what if I make the wrong one?"

"'The wrong one'?"

Marinette tucked her chin in the gap between her knees. "You said Chat Noir and I would be perfect for each other, right?"

Alya hesitated, then nodded. 

"What if… what if I decide that I don't want to date him? If I decide that… the stakes are too high for that?"

Alya smiled. "So what, if you do?"

She lifted her head.

"Marinette," Alya said, "the only person who knows the right decision to make here is you. Only  _ you _ know how you feel. What I think, what Chat Noir thinks, what anyone else thinks, doesn't take into account what  _ you _ feel deep down."

Marinette stayed quiet.

"M, I'm your best friend. No matter what you choose to do, I'll support you." She wrapped her hand around Marinette's ankle. "To me, the most important thing is that  _ you're  _ happy. Sure, I care about Chat Noir, but he isn't my best friend. I'm not gonna be mad at you if you decide you'd rather stay friends with him. I'd be happy that you're doing what you think is best for you."

"But— you said we'd be—" 

She laughed. "Because you were finishing each other's  _ puns _ , girl, that takes talent. I didn't mean for you to feel pressured by it. I'm sorry."

"Don't be sorry." Marinette smiled. "I value your opinion a lot, you know. More than anyone else's."

"Really?" Alya made a face. "Now  _ I  _ feel pressured."

Marinette giggled. "Don't worry. You always say the right thing."

**Author's Note:**

> tumblr: rosekasa


End file.
